Council to discus safety issues relating to Aug. 25 race on Tuesday

By Cory Lamz, Camera Staff Writer

Posted:
07/14/2012 05:08:24 PM MDT

Updated:
07/14/2012 08:58:09 PM MDT

Delmy and Geraldo Bermudez, both of Dallas, are photographed by Alfredo and Vilma Villalpando at the overlook on Flagstaff Mountain on Saturday. The city is considering a cap of 30,000 spectators on Flagstaff during the USA Pro Cycling Challenge next month.
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CLIFF GRASSMICK
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EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally misreported the size of the crowd for the final stage of last year's USA Pro Cycling Challenge.

With the Flagstaff Fire still weighing on officials' minds, Boulder may cap the number of spectators allowed to crowd alongside the road as cyclists race up Flagstaff Mountain next month for the eagerly anticipated finish to the USA Pro Cycling Challenge's penultimate stage.

The Boulder City Council on Tuesday will consider a recommendation by the city's Open Space Board of Trustees to limit the number of spectators on Flagstaff Mountain to 30,000. Under the plan, free wristbands would be distributed in advance of the Aug. 25 stage, with a maximum of five given out to any one person.

"It's a public safety concern," said John Putnam, chair of Boulder's Open Space Board of Trustees. "The other consideration was that we had heard a fair amount of concern from the public about how much the race would intrude into the chartered purpose of the open space area."

If you go

What: Boulder City Council

When: 6 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Boulder Municipal Building, 1777 Broadway

More info: For a complete agenda and to read the memo, go to bouldercolorado.gov and look for "Council Agendas and Minutes" under "City Council."

The plan approved by the open space trustees calls for strict enforcement of the wristbands, with Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks staff and volunteers, plus members of the Local Organizing Committee, monitoring Flagstaff Road and turning away anyone not wearing an official wristband.

The memo to the City Council detailing the wristband plan also reiterates something Boulder leaders already have said: should fire danger or weather be of concern, the city will re-route the end of its USA Pro Cycling Challenge stage. According to the memo, "feasible alternative plans" will be finalized by mid-August.

Councilwoman Suzanne Jones said she's curious how the trustees settled on a 30,000-fan cap.

"Some questions I will be wanting to ask on Tuesday: 'Is this a defensible number?' 'Does this make sense?'" Jones said. "It's important that we have an event that is safe and successful."

Putnam said the 30,000-person figure was given much thought.

"We were seeking some more input on the reasonable predictions for number of people and number of people reasonably accommodated," Putnam said. "In April, we had suggested some cap to protect safety and resources up there. Numbers in the 50,000 range and lower had been batted around.

"It's not a particularly scientific estimate, but it was something people could tie to," he added. "The number was helpful so that the city manager would have some input from us on ranges. It comes down to a gut feel."

The final stage of last year's USA Pro Cycling Challenge, from Golden to downtown Denver, drew an estimated 250,000 spectators.

"It's really hard to know the numbers," Putnam added.

Former City Councilman Steve Pomerance, who previously challenged Boulder on the legality of running the race up Flagstaff, questioned whether 30,000 still is too many people: "That's one person every 16 inches of that road. ... You're gonna have people shoulder-to-shoulder on either side; it will be two people every 3 feet."

Pomerance also questioned whether the city has established an emergency evacuation plan for the 30,000 spectators.

"One lightning strike and people will be running. But where will they run?" Pomerance said. "If City Council doesn't have a proper emergency evacuation plan in place, would this be considered willful and wanton conduct? How are they allowing 30,000 people up there with no emergency evacuation plan in place?"

The memo prepared for Tuesday's meeting does not detail an evacuation plan, but does note that city and county public safety personnel will be given complete authority to close off Flagstaff Mountain and "potentially cancel the event should such a step be deemed necessary to protect public safety."

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